Abbas declares Hamas militia illegal: AP

JERUSALEM, Jan. 6 Kyodo

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday declared Hamas' paramilitary militia in the Gaza Strip illegal, raising the stakes in his standoff with the Islamic movement, according to the Associated Press.

Abbas made the announcement two days after members of the Hamas force attacked the home of a senior security commander in Gaza, killing the man and seven of his bodyguards. The man was a member of the Preventive Security force, which is loyal to Abbas' Fatah party.

''In light of continued security chaos and assassinations that got to a number of our fighters...and in light of the failure of existing agencies and security apparatuses in imposing law and order and protecting the security of the citizens, President Mahmoud Abbas decided to reshuffle the security forces and its leadership and to consider the (Hamas) executive force, officers and members, illegal and outside the law,'' Abbas' office was quoted as saying in a statement.

Fatah and Hamas have been locked in a power struggle since the Islamic group defeated Fatah in parliamentary elections a year ago.

The dispute has centered around control of the powerful Palestinian security forces.

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